The Olympics have arrived. The gorgeous Olympic Stadium is literally down the road from Sansan’s head office in the Shibuya/Omotesando area of Tokyo. But this is no normal year. We won’t be stopping by to watch.
Fans won’t be attending and the general public is encouraged to keep its distance. By now, we’re used to this, and in fact we have thrived with our remote and hybrid teams. We’ve also continued building tech that will facilitate the latter-COVID/post-COVID era. Keep watching.
This month, we report on the company’s anniversary, its impressive vaccine rollout, and other ways we’re positively impacting our customers, staff, and greater society.
Sansan celebrates entry into its 15th year with an online anniversary party
On June 11, Sansan held a companywide, worldwide meeting to celebrate the start of its 15th year.
It kicked off with a video from our Juice design section, which you can follow on Instagram:
The top management of each unit in the company gave a presentation on the future strategy of their services, as we move to a multi-product strategy.
Botttled water kampai (cheers) from Tokyo HQ to remote staff across the world
Tasty dinner boxes were shipped across the country for partygoers
Sansan directors take part in a heated data entry battle
Then it was time for live entertainment and games at the party that followed. Founder and CEO Chika Terada, perhaps unsurprisingly, emerged as the victor in a furious business card data entry race. It seems he’s had a great deal of practice dealing with business card data.
Fear not, the event was entirely online, with the company leaders broadcasting from Tokyo headquarters to staff in many corners of Japan, Singapore, and assorted other spots around the world.
Delicious dinner boxes were also delivered to all members living in Japan.
Here’s to many more years and many more celebrations!
Vax rollout for Sansan staff and their families
The Japanese government has enabled two forms of COVID-19 vaccination: (1) through the municipality where one lives or (2) through one’s company if the company organizes the rollout and acquires necessary medical personnel.
Sansan was quick to secure medical staff and Moderna vaccines for all its staff and family members who wanted to receive it. This includes contractors and part-time employees in Japan.
Ultimately, nearly 2,000 people received their 1st shot through July 12, and full vaccination will be completed by August 10.
Your faithful writer headed to the head office to make sure he got his jab.
I have to say the whole operation was remarkably well orchestrated. Sansan’s main stage and garden meeting room were set up to facilitate a quick and socially distanced operation. People flowed through a series of stations rapidly.
I moved through reception, to a short queue, to the doctor’s screening, to my jab from a very pleasant nurse, to the waiting room to see if I had any issues (none at all), and back out into the stifling mid-city Tokyo summer within about 45 minutes.? It was truly appreciated.
Another employee commented: “It went smoothly and I was able to get my jab without waiting, then no real problems after that. I was a little hot that night, but the first shot was otherwise trouble-free.”
I had arm pain the next day or two; otherwise, no troubles. I hear the 2nd jab is tougher, so I’ll be glad to get that out of the way.
We have to protect people’s privacy and personal info, so I couldn’t take any shots inside. Take my word for it – the venue’s up there in the Aoyama Oval Building. That’s the best I could do as far as photos.
Read Sansan’s official Japanese announcement on the vaccinations here.
Sansan event tech speeding along
Since last autumn, Sansan’s ramping up its event tech, incorporating scanning technologies with online and offline events. Hybrid events are definitely the future and we aim to be a big part of it.
We’ve released smart pamphlets compatible with smartphones by simply scanning a QR code, and a smart reception system that lets attendees join events with zero reception staff needed.
This activity has been online and we expect it will gradually shift to offline and hybrid events. The smart reception function uses the same highly accurate OCR used in Sansan. Users can simply present and scan their cards, and they’re in. So simple, yet highly secure.
Demand for this service will increase as exhibitions like MWC and the Chicago Auto Show are returning to “real life”.
Articles from the Japanese media are here. Read them or run them through translation software to learn more.
TechCrunch Japan, Ascii.jp, CloudWatch
METI expands use of Sansan
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan (METI) had already implemented Sansan. Now it’s expanded use of Sansan to 5,500 employees. That includes not just METI’s large Tokyo headquarters, but also its regional staff nationwide.
This use of cloud-based contact management as well as Sansan Virtual Cards has been found to improve the work productivity and performance of METI staff because they can visualize and share their human networks. In government, such relations and connections are vital. It’s especially true in Japan where business connections start with an exchange of business cards.
This has led to the expansion of the use of the system to include not only in METI’s headquarters but also its regional branch offices.
Expansion of cloud-based communication, integrated networks, and centralized knowledge can help inform effective, high-quality policy.
And with that, we pass along our hopes and wishes for a safe and secure Tokyo 2020 Olympics that inspires people and gives everyone a much-needed lift.
